Dakota

So much to irritate here... AA's consistently dreadful lounges, tipping culture, BA's consistent refusal to admit those entitled to its PHL lounge.

I have also had PHL BA lounge staff attempt to deny entry more than once, as a GCH, flying F on an AA flight marketed by BA, which I do not think is in any way reasonable: it's a stated benefit of the status BA and OW partners peddle for loyalty.

The capacity exemption should not be routinely invoked, so is surely a red herring. If BA/ OW need more capacity to meet the normal requirements of their F/ J/ status passengers, they should build it. @:-)

User Name

A hopefully relevant comment on tip culture (for those who are denied entry to the BA lounge): try watching customers behavior in an ordinary bar in the US and then do the same at an airport lounge. Tipping at the regular bar is as good as universal, whereas at a lounge over time you'll see 50/50 at most. Therefore, based on my own observations, it's not a cultural norm to tip at an airport bar, so travelers shouldn't feel uncomfortable in having their free drink for free if they like.

dylanks

The main places where it is an issue is at AA hubs where there are far more AA flights and just a few BA flights (specifically PHL and PHX), or airports with a large number of flights but no AA lounge (IAH comes to mind, though it will be getting an AA lounge which should alleviate this problem, and perhaps IAD or SEA).

It is generally not an issue at ORD or JFK (separate terminals), LAX (shared OW lounge), MIA/ATL/SAN (shared lounge across carriers), DFW (AA lounge and Amex lounge are much better than Club at DFW), LHR T3 (sufficient lounge space across the OW carriers usually), or the Canada lounges (AA flights leave from the preclearance/transborder region rather than the international area). AA has no lounges of their own in Asia and Australia, but this is generally not an issue in that part of the world with a combo of lounges from BA, CX, JL, QF, MH, etc.

They "solved" this problem at PHX by selling the lounge to a third party operator, which restricts it to BA passengers during the hours before the BA flight, and operate it as a Priority Pass lounge during the morning and early afternoon.

I'm sure there are a few lounges I'm not thinking of, but for the most part, this challenge occurs in a few select US airports with very limited space for the BA lounge that can barely accommodate their own flights during peak times.

Hoch

OT: how is the PHX lounge since the changeover? I haven't flow direct to PHX in about two years.

H

dylanks

Same worn out furniture and same great staff. The only difference is they added a small bar to both lounges where an attendant pours all drinks in the F lounge, and all non-soft drinks in the Club lounge. To the untrained eye, you wouldn't know that anything had changed at all.

PoincianaKings

I have also been refused access when flying on a BA codeshare operated by AA. I tried to argue my case but the agent wasn't interested. In the end we went to the tiny basement Admirals which actually worked out ok because firstly it was empty and secondly right next to our gate.

In BA's defence the PHL issue will have become a lot worse since legacy US became part of OW. Before then- given the relatively low number of AA flights- I doubt it was as much an issue. And if I was on one of the BA LHR services I would have been rather narked being sent over to the admirals club.

Interestingly at IAD I was welcomed with open arms by the agent when flying on AA metal but then again this was before the evening rush!

MostlyUA

As a BA Gold, you should get free drink vouchers at the AA lounge and on the plane.

Geordie405

Yes, you should - although the number of vouchers seems to vary depending on whether you're flying domestic AA or international. From speaking to the staff at PHX the rule seems to be one premium drinks voucher for domestic flights, and two if international.

However, I have usually always managed to get two at the Eagles Nest in LAX, and most of the time you can ask for a second (or third) if you have a long layover and smile sweetly. Of course, being friendly with the bar staff usually gets round the lack of vouchers, as well as heavy / generous pours!

On the plane, it's one drink (and a complimentary snack too) if you're flying in coach. The PDA used by the cabin crew will have a green icon against your seat if you're OWE. If you're flying with American Eagle then the manifest tends to be paper and you may have to show your BP or card to get the complimentary offering.

techie

There are lots of permutations here and, as a result, the ice that is being tread on is rather thin. What if one is a Gold/GGL but flying 1st on AA? If I was in that position, I would be miffed to be sent somewhere else. It should never be a matter of what metal one flies on the day. Given that there are multiple ways to be eligible for lounge access, one should not be subject to subsequent discrimination based on secondary criteria. BA need to either expand the lounge to cater for greater demand or tighten up the admission eligibility in writing.

paul4040

Really, when flying in the USA (as a Gold flying AA F), I expect to use the AA lounges. If there is another OW airline lounge in the airport then I sometimes try to get in there, but I am always braced for being turned away - after all, there's an Admiral's or Flagship often in the same airport.

The PHL lounge was opened by BA in order to cater for BA's flights, so it isn't that unreasonable of them to deny access to people not flying with them.

In my experience the AA lounges are pretty weak, but the staff tend to be great (special mention for the charming and faultless ladies in the ORD Flagship lounge).

techie

I do not subscribe to the approach that I should expect only to use the lounge of the airline whose metal I fly. Where there is a multiple choice, I will use the best lounge on the basis of quality, proximity, time to spend there, etc. As I see it, it is one of the benefits of OW. Or, at the very least, I should never be denied entry to a lounge of an airline with whom I have status that entitles me to said lounge entry, unless it is full. And not the "we'll have a bunch of people here in half an hour" kind of full.

millionmiler

Exactly. We passengers did not make the rules. We passengers should not be rebuked for using them. Of course that's not logical on the planet that BA managers and some of their defenders come from.

Swanhunter

I do think it is perfectly reasonable for BA to reserve space in their lounge for passengers travelling with them and expecting access to key parts of the product - pre flight dining - not available elsewhere.

bibbju

I agree. I think it's quite sensible of BA actually.

dylanks

And if they did not have that policy, I believe we would see many more posts like http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...-f-lounge.html

The reality is, some US airports have a large number of AA flights, and BA only has a small little lounge with barely enough capacity for their flights. They are not going to create a system where they let people in, and then walk around the lounge to see if anyone that was supposed to leave the lounge when it became crowded is still sitting in the lounge.

I expect that PHL will allow access on days when the flights are not busy (which is pretty rare), or for GGL who politely agree to leave when it gets busy (because there aren't that many GGL). At PHL, I think the AA lounges are a reasonably decent place to wait for a flight.